Improvement in balances



A. Y. MCDONALD.

Weighing Scales.

No. 53,020. Patented March 6, 1866.

Invent Wit-messes:

UNITED. STATES:

PATENT A. Y. MCDONALD,.OF DUBUQUE, IOWA.

IMPROVEMENT IN BALANCES.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, ANDREW Y. MCDONALD, ofDubuque,in thecountyofDubuqueand State of Iowa, haveinvented new and useful Improvements inWeighing-Scales; and I do hereby declare that the following is afull,clear, and eXact description thereof, which will enable others skilledin the art to make and use the same, reference being had to theaccompanying drawings, forming part of this specification.

The present invention consists principally in the use of a horizontalframe, having bearings at one end within an outer casing or box, uponwhich frame the platform or plate used to hold or receive the articlesto be weighed is placed and rests, said frame being connected at itsother end, by and through an arrangement of devices to be hereinafterparticularly described, with an index-hand or pointer of aproperly-graduated dial-plate for indicating the weight of the articlesin pounds and fractions of a pound, according to the depression of thesaid platform by the same.

In the accompanying plate of drawings my improvements are represented,Figure 1 being a plan or top view with the top or weighing plate orplatform removed; Fig. 2, a sectional view in a vertical plane throughthe line 00 m, Fig. l; and Fig. 3 a detail view of dial-plate andindex-hand or pointer.

to to represent the outer casing, made of a cylindrical shape, open atboth ends and set upon short legs, I) I) Z1.

0 is the plate or platform on which the articles to be weighed are laid,said plate, by its projecting pieces (I d on its under side, resting andbearing upon the short arms f f upon each end of the horizontal frame g.

The frame 9 is hung at each end by short shafts h h within suitablebearings llof the outer casing, a, and the outer end, m, of itsprojecting arm a, is connected by and through a link 0 to and with theouter end, p, of a short projecting arm, q, secured to the bar 0* at ornear its center, and turning in bearings s s at each end within theouter casing or box.

To and upon the bar r, and below the same is hung, by rods t t, aweight, a, made of any suitable material and shape, on one side of whichis secured one end of a toothed rackbar, 1;, engaging with the toothedpinion 'w of the horizontal shafty, passing outward through the'casingto, having upon its outer end an index-pointer, a, moving over thegraduated circular disk or plate a, divided in the proper manner forindicating the weight in pounds and fractions of a pound of the articleor articles placed upon the platform 0 of the scales, as will bepresently described.

The graduated scale is made with a double series of divisions, asrepresented in Fi 3, the index-pointer having two points, I) and 0,respectively, for each row of said divisions, and the divisions beingnumbered from 0 to 20, as seen in Fig. 3.

Placing the article or a ticles to be weighed upon the platform cit isdepressed in direct proportion thereto, and bearing down upon the frameg, hung in the outer casing, a, as described, through its projectingpieces (I d; it correspondingly depresses the same, turning it in itsbearings, which, through its arm a, connected by and through the weight,rackbar, and pinion, with the index-h and, as hereinabove particularlydescribed, proportionally actuates the same, the parts of the machinebeing so arranged with regard to each other that the index-hand shall beso operated by and through the devices described as to point at theproper division upon the graduated plate to indicate the exact number ofpounds and fractions of a pound contained in the article or articlesbeing weighed, as is evident without further description.

The object of the double row of divisions is to enable the machine to beused for the weighing of articles of considerable weight, the second orinner row serving to indicate, through the pointer c of the index, thepounds and fractions of a pound contained in the articles when theyexceed the full number of pounds expressed in the outer circle or row ofdivisions.

Still another graduated circle within the inner one, 0, could be formed,if desired, but I deem two all that are necessary when the scales are tobe used for ordinary purposes.

The proportion of the parts and of the dial may be varied in manyrespects without departing from the principles of my invention, asbefore stated.

In case the scales should be placed upon an uneven surface, in whichcase its weight a would have a tendency to swing out of its trueposition, thus causing the index-hand to be in direct proportion movedaway from its zeropoint, at which it should point when the scales arenot in use, I arrange the legs I) b, one of which is seen in Fig. 2, toand Within the outer case, a, in such a manner that, by turning the sameup or down, the case a can be adjusted to the proper position or leveledto bring its index-pointer to the proper graduation of the scale, as isevident without further description.

f is a rod, hung at g to the interior of the casing a, and projectingoutside of the same by one side of the weight it, by moving which towardand bringing it in contact with the Weight the violent or quickvibrations of the same can be prevented, thus facilitating the weighingoperation.

To steady the Weighing-platform in its moveinent up and down I attach tothe center of the same, upon its under side, a vertical rod, h, hingedby a connecting-bar, Z, to the outer casing, a.

I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent The generalarrangement of the scale herein described, the same consisting insuspending the platform upon which the material to be weighed is placedto and upon the swinging fr ame g, connected by and through the weight awith the index-hand z, substantially in the manner and operating asspecified,

ANDREW Y. MCDONALD. Witnesses:

R0131. A. BUsBY, JOHN M. BUCHHOTZ.

